Inspired by The Great Op Shop Road Trip, I decided to organise a social trip for our four-wheel-drive club. It is to be an Op Shop Crawl on July 10. I figured I would start this - my first ever solo trip leader effort - by sticking to what I know, namely, the op shops of the north-east Brisbane area. And where better to kick off the tour than my beloved RSPCA Strathpine, opposite Westfield, where we had our shop for eight years.
Heather and I recced the trip a few weeks ago. The trip plan was a cuppa at Westfield, off to the RSPCA Shop, then hit the road.
There are two big good stores side by side at Lawnton. The first is Neighbours Aid, where I found the suit for my son David's school formal many years ago. Pity they can't spell!
Right next door is Vinnies. I decided I need a competition for my trip participants, so we devised a scavenger hunt along the way, and I found the prize for it here.
I figured this heavy glass salad-or-whatever bowl would appeal to most people's tastes, and it set me back $8.
Heather bought a piece of 1970s artwork here, which delighted her (you will see it later). Everyone to their own taste, I guess; but I fell that only those who didn't live through the 70s would value these images.
Now it was time for morning tea, so we headed for Bullocky Rest on the shores of Lake Samsonvale. On a weekday, we were almost the only ones there. And a koala walked right past me, moving from tree A to tree B.
While weekdays are inconvenient for many, the opening hours of op shops make a trip like this almost impossible to organise on weekends. The shops that do open on Saturdays often close at lunch time, and forget Sundays. And Bullocky Rest is chockers on the weekend.
We now headed for Redcliffe, parked one block back from the waterfront, and found ourselves neatly positioned next to two op shops and a retro shop. Inside, I found a wonderful unused 1970s floral teatowel for my friend Jo's collection, but look at what was in the window! By the time we returned to the car, this reel-to-reel tape recorder had been sold.
Up the street a bit, there is a big old-fashioned haberdasher, so it's a fun area to explore, and if you nostalgically inclined, you are right beside Bee Gees Way as well.
I was actually back in the same area a few weeks later, with my Great Op Shop Road Trip buddies, Jan and Jo, and Jan found this water jug in one of those two op shops. We love its simple lines.
A bit further south down the Redcliffe Peninsula is Margate, where there are two BIG op shops side by side, the new-and-improved Save The Children store, and the Lifeline Superstore. This photo shows one half of the 'outside' section of the latter.
It was here that Heather spotted and I bought a heavy-based 28cm Tupperware frying pan. Who know that Tupperware made frying pans? I didn't.
I had a look on the Tupperware website: $249 with lid. No lid? For me, no big deal. I have lids that size anyway. Cost to me? $5. And it has been in almost constant use since.
Now it was lunch time, so headed back over the Ted Smout Bridge to Sandgate and Shorncliffe where we had lunch at Cafe on the Park, overlooking beautiful Upper Moora Park and Bramble Bay.
The plan for the trip is for participants to either picnic in the park, with the cafe as backup (especially for those who want coffee), but we though we should check to see if the food is edible. It is. The final stop was the collection of four op shops at Geebung, where the obligatory 4WD Club trip icecreams are obtainable, prize presentations would be made, and people could shop further if they choose or drift away in their own time. In all, a most enjoyable day.
This is Heather's haul for the day: the 70s art, jeans, shirt, shoes and a box/easel which is perfect for her artwork projects. She had a great time.
And now the big question, how many club members have signed up for the trip in two weeks time? None.
Here is my little collection of goodies (sans clothing). I now own two of my favourite design egg beaters (one in the dishwasher and one out); my picnic set is enhanced by a good sharp knife; I have a sugar bowl that matches my favourite casserole; Mum has another teaspoon in her room; my one-handed camping whisk has been upgraded; the camping cutlery set has grown; I have some new jewellery and I can listen to K T Tunstall in the car. I bought 23 items of clothing and 15 of bric-a-brac for a grand total of $103.10.
Jan hasn't sent me a photo of her loot but here is Jo's. My particular favourite is the little glass two-handed sugar bowl centre back. Jo bought 12 (I think) items of clothing, 17 or bric-a-brac and 9 books. Not sure of her grand total expenditure. Jan's total was 26 items of clothing and 17 of bric-a-brac for an outlay of $97.95.
What we learned:
- Not all op shops are listed on the website opshops.org If you know a good shop, please go onto the website, see if it is there, and if not, add it. Others may thank you for it.
- Local knowledge is a wonderful thing. Ask the locals. About anything.
- Check the opening and closing times of the shops you plan to visit; if necessary via a phone call. Sometimes when it is quiet they may close a little early.
- When you 'do' several shop in a row, looking at clothing, you develop a condition we dubbed 'op shop shoulder' from holding your arms up high to work your way through all those hangers. Be warned.
- If you like it, buy it. You can alter it when you get home (because I am a short-ass, I had to take up six tops!). There is no going back on a road trip. If it doesn't work out, recycle it via your local shop.
- Never judge a book by it cover, or an op shop by its external appearance!
To end, here is a photo of me at work, completely dressed by The Great Op Shop Road Trip, including accessories (except my crummy watch). Not bad, eh?
The Dickabram Bridge was built 23 metres above the Mary River in the 1880s when Dickabram was a thriving township (the population now appears to be about 10). During the 1893 flood, it was under water!
It is one of only two road&rail bridges left in Australia and is heritage listed. It's a rickety old drive across, believe me. I am particularly impressed with the way it goes up in the middle.
On the western side there is a little camping ground with toilets, and when we arrived, there was a family there who seemed to resent our intrusion. If you were camped there, you would be pleased that the road goes nowhere, because the sound of vehicles crossing the bridge would keep you awake at night. On the loo wall there was a sign advertising a fete at the nearby Theebine School. How's this for a school badge?
We headed back east towards Theebine and stopped to photograph a wonderful rusting old tractor in a green field that we had spotted on the trip to the bridge. While I was lining up the shot (with my phone) the phone rang, and I was so excited, I accidentally started videotaping. On the audio, you can hear me panicking. Yes, it was Tony Mammino on the line and he had my camera.
It turn out there is a Mammino shop in Childers shopping strip as well as the farmhouse outset, and that is where I had called. When the shop spoke to the farmhouse, the confusion was revealed and the camera located. Tony offered to mail it down, but dear Jo nobly volunteered to drive up to Childers the following week and collect it.
It was time for drinks all round at the Theebine pub, another well-known watering hole I had yet to set my eyes on. And what a beauty!
We could hear music so headed out the back where there is a large covered barbecue area with a small stage called - funnily enough - Backstage at Theebine. A group of students from Gympie High School were getting some practice in front of a live audience, and naturally Jo know one of the teachers. We sat out in the sunshine, ate up and drank up, congratulating me on my good luck and us on a brilliant concept well executed. Our thoughts then turned towards home.
We continued down the back roads towards Imbil, unloaded my stuff and Jan's stuff into my car; I dropped Jan at Carters Ridge and drove back to Brisbane through a spectacular storm near the Glasshouse Mountains. Up until then, it hadn't rained at all during the whole trip. We had been smiled upon by both the op shop gods and the weather gods.
